Association Between Obesity and Periodontitis in Pregnant Females

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study is to investigate whether overweight and obesity before pregnancy are associated with periodontitis during pregnancy. METHODS: This study examined a total of 315 pregnant females at 21 to 24 weeks of gestation. Overweight and obesity were defined based on criteria proposed by the World Health Organization Expert Consultation. Periodontal conditions were assessed by measuring clinical periodontal attachment loss (AL). To investigate whether obese pregnant females have increased risk according to the extent of periodontitis, the data were divided into two groups: 1) generalized periodontitis and 2) localized periodontitis. A comparison among underweight, normal-weight, and overweight/obese groups for explanatory variables was analyzed using the χ(2) test for categorical variables and an analysis of variance for continuous variables. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed with adjustments for age, health and oral health behaviors, and obstetric information. RESULTS: Age, age at first delivery, periodontitis, and periodontal conditions (two or more interproximal sites with AL ≥4 mm not on the same tooth) were significantly associated with body mass index (BMI) (P <0.05). The adjusted odds ratio of periodontitis was 4.57 (95% confidence interval = 2.30 to 9.07) for overweight and obese females (BMI ≥23 kg/m(2)), after adjusting for all of the covariates. CONCLUSION: There is a strong association between prepregnancy overweight/obesity and periodontitis in pregnant females.